Swissquote Banking Group To Unveil Crypto Custody Service in Late March

In its report on fiscal 2018 business performance, Swissquote, one of the leading banking groups out of Switzerland, has divulged its intention to introduce crypto custody services later this month. The report states that the company has been offering trading in five major cryptos since 2017 and is now launching a crypto custody service.

The introduction of the new facility is set for March 21. Users will be able to swap crypto from external storage facility to their Swissquote account and vice versa, as per the report.

As the document indicates, the maneuver will allow the company to “become a secure and technologically fully integrated cryptocurrency trading platform and depositary for private and institutional clients alike.”

The service is based on services offered by Crypto Storage AG, a fintech company. Crypto Storage AG is a Swiss start-up providing private key management infrastructure. It creates hardware security interfaces and offers services to financial mediators around the world, according to the company’s website.

After a comparable decision by Swiss Falcon Private Bank, Swissquote started accepting Bitcoin (BTC) in mid-2017. Later that year, four more major altcoins namely Ripple (XRP), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) was listed by the company for trading. Swissquote posted a 44% increase in profits of 44% in the first the half of 2018 in several months, ascribing the increase to the “crypto boom.”

This January, Falcon Private Bank unveiled facility for direct transfers and storage of four major cryptocurrencies — Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Litecoin — in order to establish “fully bankable” blockchain assets. Also in January, Vontobel, the country’s largest private investment bank, established a crypto – custody solution focusing on banks and asset managers.

Switzerland was one of the leaders of state – level crypto adoption. The Financial Market Supervisory Authority of the country has recently published directives for companies trying to receive a fintech license.